Frank Gehry

His mother often took him to various concerts and museums across the city of Los Angeles. This is how he developed an inclination towards architecture, as he had a creative streak.

He married Anita Snyder in 1952. Four years after marrying Anita, he changed his name to Frank O. Gehry in 1956. It was her suggestion, as he had faced anti-Semitism as a child and as undergraduate.

He moved to Cambridge in 1956 along with family, to study city planning at Harvard. However, he left the course in between, as he was disheartened.

Frank was born on February 28, 1929, in Toronto, Canada, to Irwin and Thelma Goldberg. He moved to Los Angeles as a teenager in 1947 and became a naturalised US citizen.

He gained interest in architecture from a very early age. He fancied creating imaginary homes with items from his grandmother’s hardware store.

Contrary to what some might think, he was uncertain about his career, in the beginning. He drove a delivery truck in order to support himself for various courses in Los Angeles City College.

The first architecture course was taken by him on a hunch. He then liked it, and an early chance encounter with renowned architect Raphael Soriano strengthened his belief in the art.

He won scholarships to pursue architecture at University of Southern California. He graduated from here in the year 1954.

After his stints with Victor Gruen Associates, his restless nature drew him towards establishing his own firm Gehry Associates. This took place after he returned to Los Angeles in 1962.

He spent considerable amount of time with famous painters Ed Moses, Ed Ruscha and Bob Irwin. During this period, he developed the need to create his own vision of the styles adopted by them.

His first brush with widespread attention was when his industrial corrugated cardboard witnessed sudden popularity. This line of furniture, known as Easy Edges, got featured in large magazine spreads.

His works included Rouse Company headquarters in Columbia, Maryland and the Santa Monica shopping mall. He also made imaginative houses for many artist friends.

Though he continued to design local buildings in California, he also received several national and international commissions. Among his designs, Chiat/Day building in Venice, constructed in 1991, is famous for binocular structures.

One of his best known creations is the Walt Disney Concert Hall, Downtown Los Angeles. This 2003 masterpiece, endowed with tremendous acoustics, was labeled as the centerpiece for neighborhood revitalization.

Gehry’s first skyscraper was the New York by Gehry at 8 Spruce Street, completed in February 2011. It is 76 stories high and has a unique exterior made of stainless steel and glass.

He was appointed as joint architect by Foster + Partners to make the High street phase of Battersea in London. This will be his first design for London and will include residences and hotels.